James Azzarello

My recent work focuses on a modern approach to mixed media, emphasizing encaustic (wax) painting alongside oil and acrylic on canvas and hardboard. I deliberately combine traditional painting techniques with metals, concrete, and hardwoods to expand the vocabulary of surface and structure. This hybrid practice produces two intertwined strands: wall-based paintings that emphasize layered translucency, texture, and the physicality of wax and paint; and art furniture that functions as usable objects while asserting sculptural presence. Metals introduce line and tension; concrete provides mass and contrast; hardwoods bring warmth and craft. Together these elements create a visual tension between utility and aesthetic autonomy, inviting viewers to engage both physically and visually.
Commissions and public work. In addition to the body of work I maintain, I undertake commissioned projects for private collectors, commercial interiors, and public spaces. My commission practice is material-led and collaborative: I develop proposals that respond to site, program, and budget while preserving formal clarity and material integrity. Typical commissions range from single-site sculptural furniture and wall works to multi-piece installations that ...

National Academy of Fine Arts